A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday ordered the outgoing Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mohammed Adamu, to appear before it on February 4 for his alleged continued disobedience to court pronouncements.
The Police Chief whose summons has been served on him at the Force Headquarters in Abuja is to show cause in court why contempt charge should not be filed against him to commit him to prison.
Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu issued the summons against the IGP following his alleged refusal to reinstate illegally retired Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr Patrick Okoli.
A Federal High Court had voided and set aside the forceful retirement of Okoli from the force on the grounds that due process was not followed in the purported retirement.
The court, while ordering the reinstatement of the DCP Okoli, imposed a fine of N10m as punitive cost against police authorities.
Although Police contested the high court judgment at the Court of Appeal, it lost as the appellate court affirmed the decision of the lower court.
In compliance with the Court of Appeal decision, DCP Okoli was reinstated via a letter and in another letter was again retired compulsorily by the police authorities.
In a form 48 filed against the IGP, the Police authorities were accused of toying with order of court deliberately.
The plaintiff thus sought the leave of court to file contempt charge against the police.
Justice Ijeoma after listening to arguments canvassed by Mr Arinze Solomon Eggo, counsel to the applicant, issued an order directing the IGP to appear before her court on Thursday, February 4.
An enrolled order signed by the Judge read in part: “An order of this court is hereby made mandating the Inspector General of Police to appear before this court on the 4th day of February 2021 at 9am to show cause why a contempt proceeding should not be taken against the Inspector General of Police for refusal to obey the judgment of the Court in this matter which judgment was affirmed by the Court of Appeal.
“This summons shall be served forthwith.”
Stay ahead with the latest updates! Join The ConclaveNG on WhatsApp and Telegram for real-time news alerts, breaking stories, and exclusive content delivered straight to your phone. Don’t miss a headline — subscribe now!
